Rouge Valley Conservation Centre
Nature Notes
By Steve Gahbauer
November 2008
Of Bats and Bees.
Bats have a problem. It is called white-nose syndrome and it affects mostly Little Brown, Northern long-eared, Small-footed and Indiana bats. So far, the disease is rampant in the north-eastern United States, but it could come to eastern Canada this winter.
Bats affected by white-nose syndrome look like they've stuck their noses into a flour jar. The powdery looking substance is actually a white fungus that coats not only their noses but also their ears, wings and tails. Affected bats lose much of their fat reserves which they need to survive the winter. Instead of hibernating deep within their caves, the sick bats fly outside or near cave entrances in winter and die by the thousands, according to Bat Conservation International.
A bat researcher at Boston University says we don't know how the disease is spread. What we do know is that bats migrate between New York State and Quebec during the summer, and that's why white-nose syndrome could come to eastern Canada. It's also possible that humans carry the white-nose syndrome from cave to cave by picking up spores of the fungus on the floor of bat caves on their boots.
If you find a bat you suspect is carrying white-nose syndrome, don’t touch it and contact your provincial wildlife department. Don't go into caves and areas where bats may be hibernating. If bats are woken up too often during their hibernation they eat into their fat reserves, which jeopardizes their survival.
Bees are in trouble too. Massive die-offs of honeybees (apis mellifera) are reported and nobody really knows exactly why this happens. There are theories and likely contributing factors. Diseases, viruses and harmful parasitic mites imported from Europe that can kill entire colonies, are suspected to be the major reasons for the drastic decline, and habitat loss, pesticide use and unusual weather conditions are probably exacerbating the situation. But according to Dr. Laurence Parker of the Department of Biology at York University, who has studied bees for 35 years, has published more than 100 papers, and is currently involved in a joint project with Guelph University to establish a DNA data bank for bee species, the real reasons for the decline of bee populations are still largely a mystery.
The wake-up call came in the winter of 2006-07 when large die-offs occurred across North America. The inexplicable phenomenon was dubbed “colony collapse disorder.” Millions of bees left their hives and vanished without a trace. In some areas, 90% disappeared. In that winter, Canadian bee keepers experienced a devastating hit, losing nearly one-third of their stock.
Why does the disappearance of bees matter? Because bees are the most important pollinators on the planet. (See “Pollinators” in the June 2008 mini-essay). Without honeybees we would not have canola, alfalfa, blueberries, apples, pears, strawberries, cranberries, peaches, cherries, sunflowers, squash, tomatoes, or chocolate. Even coffee, although self-pollinating, shows yield increases in the order of 50% when coffee plantations are pollinated by bees. The industrious insects also pollinate gardens, flowering plants in meadows, and trees in forests. Albert Einstein once said that if there were no bees, humans could not survive longer than four years. Of course, that's not really true, but it is a fact that almost 30% of all the food we eat depends on the ceaseless work of pollinators.
There are about 800 species of bees in Canada, 200 of them in Ontario. Of those, only a dozen are honey-bees. Not all bees make honey, however. In fact most bees don't. Depending on what they feed on, the substances they produce for a cache to survive the winter vary, and most would not be considered pleasant to our palates. Carrion bees, for instance, feed on putrefying flesh of dead animals and the “honey” they produce tastes more like a very ripe camembert.
Also, not all bees work hard. Few bee species nest in hives, most nest in the ground and in dead stems. Cuckoo bees lay their eggs in nests of other bees. And, contrary to popular belief, most bees are really solitary creatures.
Bees are not only beautiful and beneficial, they are amazing insects. Bees have excellent vision and can also see infrared colours. They see the colour red as black. They orient themselves by recognizing and memorizing patterns, shapes and landscape characteristics for flying distances of up to 18 km and to find their nest entrances upon returning. Australian scientists have recently discovered that honeybees can even count – to four, but not beyond. Remarkable for a brain the size of a sesame seed.
Their stingers are the ultimate symbol of female power – modified egg-laying tubes that also act as defence weapons. With only the females bearing them, it's small wonder that social bees (and wasps) form solidly matriarchal societies.
Honeybees live up to three years. They become active at 15°C and make about 60 foraging trips to produce 1 g of honey. The amount of honey needed by an average honeybee colony (40,000 – 50,000 in summer and 5,000 – 20,000 in winter) to get through the cold season is about 25 kg. Predators include spiders, flycatchers, skunks, raccoons and mice.
Another reason why we should take the massive decline of bees serious is that they are excellent indicators and monitors of the quality of terrestrial environment. As bee populations decline, impacts will be felt throughout the food chain and cohesive ecosystems.
So, what can we do to be bee-friendly?
Stop using insecticides, populate gardens with native plants, leave bare soil patches and old, dead stems for nesting sites, and minimize mulching that covers nest entrances.
And the next time a female bee stings you – and by doing so commits suicide because she loses her stinger – control your hurt and annoyance and be a little sympathetic.
Sources: Canadian Wildlife Federation, Bat Conservation International, Wild City, Reuters, Reader's Digest, Royal Canadian Institute.
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